People Are Roasting ‘Target’ Fashion Designers By Wearing Their Dresses And Then Taking Their Own Photos

We’ve been living in our pajamas, loungewear and pajama-formalwear-hybrid getups for nearly a year thanks to the pandemic. And apparently, Target wanted to change that… with prairie dresses. It didn’t take long before someone spotted the prairie dresses hanging on the racks. But the reaction wasn’t what the designers were probably hoping to get. See, instead of raving over the dresses, the shopper couldn’t help roasting them instead. To the shopper, the dress looked like something a person who “just lost the farm after locusts ate their crops” would wear. This hilarious observation made the dresses fly off Target’s racks faster than you can say ‘prairie dress’. Then people created dozens of surprisingly hilarious photographs.

Folks living near a Target location got in on the prairie dress roasting. But the biggest plot twist of this hilarious challenge has got to be how it became an event not just for ladies but also the gents! In fact, some of the best shots contributed to the challenge were from couple Bre and Matt Bogert. The couple’s entry to the #TargetDressChallenge featured Matt donning the dress in all his 6’8” tall, 300-pound glory. Their submission is among the most popular in the challenge, having gained over 5.8K reactions, 1.1K comments and 3K shares! In an interview, Bre shared the events that led to the epic photoshoot.

 

Target’s prairie dress line was roasted online and it launched a thousand pictures

 

“Target has decided if we’re gonna suffer a pandemic, we might as well look like we just lost the farm after locusts ate our crops.”

Lorca Damon roasts Target's prairie dress selection and starts a viral challenge
Lorca Damon

 

People are roasting Target by dressing up like they’re living in the world of Little House On The Prairie

Bre and Matt Bogert’s journey to joining the #TargetDressChallenge started when Bre stumbled upon one of the earlier entries while she was browsing one of her farm or chicken-related groups on Facebook. She instantly recognized the dress, having seen it hanging on Target’s racks before. Normally, it wouldn’t have baffled her, but something about the picture had her doing a double take. She excitedly showed her husband the picture, and the couple had quite a laugh over it.

 

“No chickens were harmed during this photo shoot.”

Cheri Lawrence Grovestein and husband in red and orange version of the Target prairie dress for their roasting
Cheri Lawrence Grovestein

 

“It all started with a post that went viral, someone had made a silly remark on a certain style of dresses at Target. Then, some people in one of the most fabulous chicken groups I’m in caught wind of it and ran with the idea!”

Jen Gessele channels the old world with her roasting entry
Jen Gessele

 

“My poor girls are terrified of this dress and ran away screaming, so I had to substitute.”

Andy Fell terrified his chickens when he came out wearing his orange prairie dress
Andy Fell

 

“Loggin’ – got plenty of firewood to last through the winter”

Lady wearing orange dress stands atop a tree stump to participate in Target dress roasting
Fruition Acres

 

“People are taking these old fashioned dresses from Target and recreating old time moments by taking photos in the dresses… with their livestock.”

woman wins the target dress roasting event by posing with chickens and an ancient stove
Melissa Tomas

 

Matt Bogert – and many other fathers, husbands and brothers –  got involved in the roasting too

After stumbling upon the picture of someone else’s husband donning the now infamous Target dress, Bre immediately asked Matt to participate in the challenge too. He initially tried to refuse, but when their 8- and 10-year-old sons saw the shoots, they immediately joined Bre’s campaign. Their eldest son won his father’s participation by asking Matt to do the challenge as his birthday present. And so, the doting dad ended up slipping into a floor-length XXL prairie dress that showed a bit of skin. Bre shared:

“My almost 10-year-old asked him to do it for his birthday present (we did the shoot on his birthday!) and off to Target we went! He’s 6’8” tall and 300 pounds – we didn’t think we would find a dress, and that XXL was a little stretchy and it fit like a glove. The dress was supposed to be floor-length, but as you can see, a little knee was shown. The meme we saw circulating about the locusts and losing the farm made us laugh so hard. When we saw those dresses in person, we HAD TO try. 75% of the shots I took were shaky because my boys and I were laughing so hard.”

 

Melissa Tomas and her husband joined the dress roasting challenge
Melissa Tomas

 

“The two aught two aught year of our Lord hath vexed me. I am vexed, I say.”

Thomas Henrich feeds a chicken while roasting Target
Thomas Henrich

 

“Amazingly, he saw the dress hanging after being washed and came up with the idea himself, no inspiration or alcohol or coercion needed!”

Carol Nall's husband gamely joins the Target dress roasting challenge wearing the yellow frock
Carol Nall

 

man chugs a drink and holds a fat hen while roasting target
Melissa Tomas

 

Even kids are joining in on the dress roasting fun

The Bogert family live on a farm where they keep various livestock like goats, chickens, rabbits and hounds. This was definitely an advantage for them, as they don’t need to scout for a location or buy props. However, Matt didn’t really go for the “locusts-just-ate-my-crops-and-now-I-am-sad” vibe that the challenge required. Instead, the indulging dad struck his cheekiest, most enthusiastic poses all while cradling a black hen! According to the couple, the #TargetDressChallenge was definitely a much-needed outlet for them. They, just like everyone else, have had to go through some pretty hard times and it was really good to have a reason to dress up and laugh.

 

“My husband’s family had been through a rough time recently with losing loved ones and once we realized how much joy this was bringing and light-hearted fun, the deal was sealed.”

little girl gracefully poses in red prairie dress
Melissa Tomas

 

“We didn’t need a single ‘prop’ (except the dress!) – it was a given…”

Melissa Tomas' young tot happily joins in on the family roasting of the Target prairie dress line
Melissa Tomas

 

“We thought it would reach a few folks outside our chicken and farm groups, but not like this!

Melissa Tomas' daughter dons a yellow prairie dress and cuddlse a fluffy hen in the snow
Melissa Tomas

 

The Bogert’s adorably hilarious contribution definitely won a lot of praise

Once published online, the pictures both shocked and amused the couple’s relatives and friends. Then, all of sudden, the pictures became one of the roasting event’s top submissions. This led to them receiving torrents of messages from amused folk all over. Bre was definitely surprised, but she’s glad that it’s made a lot of people smile.

 

“We have had some very complimentary messages about my adorable husband (he’s taken, ladies, sorry!), but the best messages have been from folks who appreciate the humor in these isolating times.”

Man hoists himself up over the cattle enclosure to participate in Target dress roasting
Melissa Tomas

 

“Journal entry 324: another day in the life on the homestead while on lockdown. Made myself a new apron and a bonnet. Recently the town accused me of witchcraft and only spared my life because they believe I can conjure up some cure for this virus. At least now I can fly my broom around in peace.”

Sayda Shanik Krasovec pokes fun at the Target dress roasting challenge
Sayda Shanik Krasovec

 

“My whole family thinks I’ve completely lost it (and maybe I have), but I surely hope this makes someone’s day.”

Michaela Orme joins in on roasting Target's prairie dress
Michaela Orme

 

“I really like the “TARGET DRESS”.. And I personally think I rocked it”

Lindsay Bright likes the Target prairie dress
Lindsay Bright

 

The challenge has entertained thousands

Despite it’s oddness, the #TargetDressChallenge has managed to lift the spirits of people all over the country. In fact, Bre and Matt reported that aside from appreciation messages, they also receive heart-warming messages from people who hadn’t laughed in a long time during the pandemic. The couple hadn’t anticipated the response they would get from the outside world. But Bre and Matt are happy to help people cheer up.

 

“Some said that this was something they needed to see on a particularly hard day, and just thanking us for sharing some joy.”

woman holds a pitchfork while roasting the priarie dress line of Target
Melissa Tomas

 

“My husband and I both agree if we can make anyone’s day brighter (even if it’s him in a dress with our chickens or goats as the cause), then it’s a great day.”

blond bearded man carries eggs using his dress' skirt
Melissa Tomas

 

Some folks have offered to buy Matt’s dress

 

“Other messages were from folks wanting to buy the dress (we told them we are making it into pillows to always remember this shoot!), and some other chicken breed-related questions.”

a woman grins as she poses alongside farm animals in her roasting entry
Melissa Tomas

“It’s day 329 of the great plague. The Target Mercantile has blessed us with new fabrics to enhance our pandemic fashion. I feel Margaret got a little bit risky in her decision to flaunt that racy lace seam. After all we are modest women out on the farmstead. Unwanted stares from the menfolk is unholy.”

Erin Kellar Stewart ventures into town for supplies along with a companion to roast Target's prairie dress line
Erin Kellar Stewart

 

“We really wanted a Holy Bible for the shoot but roads are bad and I couldn’t get one from the dollar tree.”

Jay Durham poses in yellow and red versions of the iconic Target dress
Jay Durham

 

“Quarantine day 329: Pa said if this winter holds out much longer he’ll need to butcher the hog… I don’t reckon I’m ready to say goodbye, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a hankering for some fresh bacon. These grits ain’t cutting it, and dine-in just ain’t an option round these parts anymore.”

Corrie Bubbico wears an orange prairie dress and poses alongside her pet hog in her Target dress roasting submission
Corrie Bubbico

“Can’t believe I let y’all talk me into this!!”

Andrea McNair holds up her children in her roasting pictorial
Andrea McNair

 

“Day 93 at the Wiggins Homestead: after putting the babies to sleep I gathered wood and finished churning the butter. After a little break, I done a little work on the farm and climbed a big hill. Thank you #target for making me a dress that is designed for my everyday chores.”

Emily McCallie Wiggins wears a red variation of the Target dress being roasted by the internet
Emily McCallie Wiggins

 

This challenge has made so many people happy

With all the gloom and doom that we’ve all had to go through, it’s understandable why a lot of folks find it hard to smile, laugh or just feel happy. That’s why we surely appreciate how this challenge, which was originally inspired by a someone’s quick-witted roasting, gave people a reason to dress up, get silly and make others grin from ear to ear. This is definitely one of the most wholesome roasting sessions ever to happen. Plus, we also love the fact that the challenge wasn’t reserved strictly for the ladies only! It was definitely a treat to see some gentlemen donning the now-iconic Target prairie dress!

 

Source: Bre Bogert Photography